DealBook’s one thing to watch today

Back story: The company has struggled for years to turn around its fortunes as Amazon upended the retail industry. With Edward S. Lampert, the financier who bought Sears in 2005 and merged it with Kmart, as chief executive, it has tried numerous strategies, including selling off stores and brands to raise cash. None has borne fruit, and the company has lost money every year since 2012.

The news: The Journal reported that Sears could finally file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, an event that many analysts had expected for years. The retailer said on Tuesday that it had added Alan Carr, an expert on financial reorganizations, to its board. It had already hired other restructuring advisers, including the investment bank Lazard and the law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges. Mr. Lampert had put forward a plan to reorganize the company’s debts outside of a bankruptcy filing, but it isn’t clear if Sears’s creditors have accepted it.

What’s next: Sears has $134 million in debt that comes due on Monday. The Journal reported that any filing would likely come before then. The company’s stock is down nearly 20 percent in premarket trading.